July 24, 2018 – Daily Stats – End to End on the Long Trail
- Start: Trail Angel’s house
- End: Trail Angel’s house
- Total: 0
A Perfect Rest Day
It is a beautiful day! Val had some things to take care of, but knowing we would love go swimming on our zero day she set us up with Clay. He took True Friend and me out for lunch before taking us to a local swimming hole.
The swimming hole was called the Punch Bowl. A rock sat in the middle of a stream, creating a deep pool of water. I watched in amazement as our new friend ran to the end of a tree and jumped into the pool below. I wanted so much to join in, but I couldn’t trust my balance. Ever since rolling my ankles on the AT they have not been the same and without my glasses I didn’t trust that my ankles would support me. Instead I found myself enjoying watching a man was balancing rocks along the shoreline. He described his process as meditative. I understand as it was mesmerizing to watch.
Clay and I cooked a sampling of three different Sunbasket meals together. We enjoyed the meals tremendously as they were delicious. I also appreciated the beautiful teamwork of working with Clay.
Making a New Plan
I am grateful that we were able to spend time swimming on our zero day., but with a forecast of week long rain, True Friend and I decided to re-evaluate our plan. After much deliberation, we decided to jump to Section 3 and return to Section 2 at the end of our journey. This would allow us to finish at Mt. Mansfield, and as it is the highest point in the state I thought it would make a perfect finish. More importantly, it buys us some time for the weather to clear before we are exposed above treeline for both Camel’s Hump and Mt. Mansfield.